Neat Image 4.4 Pro+
Noise Reduction Software


  When visible noise appears in your digital photos, much like the static on a badly tuned TV channel, it can be very annoying.

Neat Image 4.4 Pro+ is one of many programs designed to help you remove noise and grain from your digital photos, and it doesn’t stop there – this program is also capable of removing annoying noise from scanned images, so there is no longer a need to let digital noise ruin your photos and other images.

A screenshot of the Filtration Job Editor in Neat Image Pro
 

Now lets take a closer look at the pros and cons that come with this product.
 

Ease-of-Use

Although it may not appear so at first, Neat Image 4.4 Pro+ is actually a very simple program to use, and this doesn’t mean that it is only targeted towards beginners – while there are simple to use controls, default settings and several automatic features that are perfect for beginners, more advanced users can easily make adjustments to any of the settings in the program and customize the process of noise removal to suit their requirements.
 

No More Noise

Putting ease-of-use aside for a moment, it’s time to take a closer look at what Neat Image 4.4 Pro+ actually does - get rid of noise. Fortunately this program does exactly what it claims, and it does it very well.

As a matter of fact, Neat Image 4.4 Pro+ does an outstanding job of reducing noise, and in many cases removing noise entirely from a digital image. The program also manages to remove grain and JPG-compression artifacts in images, and in some cases it can even remove texturing that results from scanning an image on a textured paper.
 

Shortcomings

There are not many problems to talk about with Neat Image 4.4 Pro+, but two are worth mentioning. The plug-in version of the program can have trouble processing large images if your computer has under 1GB of system memory, but keep in mind that the standalone version of the program doesn’t suffer from such severe problems.

The only other shortcoming that comes to mind is that there is no walkthrough to guide new users through using the program for the first time, but as mentioned before, the program is well laid-out and easy to use.
 

Conclusion

In summary, Neat Image 4.4 Pro+ does exactly what it says on the box! Although the memory problem is undesirable, the lack of a walkthrough for beginners is forgivable considering that the controls are so easy to use and the excellent output quality.

With a price tag of $74.90 for the Pro+ version, and other versions available for as little as $29.90, this program provides excellent results at a very affordable price. Definitely consider Neat Image 4.4 Pro+ if you are tired of seeing noise in your digital photos – you won’t be disappointed!


Touch Up Your Photos Easily

Ulead PhotoImpact is a great photo editor that does its job - yet doesn't burn a hole in your pocket. I've used this program for a long time and it has never let me down. PhotoImpact has all the usual tools you expect in a photo editor, contained within a smart, uncluttered user interface. It's definitely worth a try, especially if you don't want to invest in expensive commercial editors like Adobe Photoshop CS.


Related Articles

You may also wish to read the following related articles:

Top 5 beginner photo editors for Windows
Adobe Photoshop Elements 3 software review
Simple techniques for touching up digital photos

Tricks for removing red eye from your photos
Apply the vignette effect to your portraits for a timeless feel


 

© 2006 Basic-Digital-Photography.com